Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-03-18

"What! will you never weep aGain.
"Never-weep-again." "what! VIII Wv
never die againy" "Never-dle-asa,n.:,
Oh, We army of departed kindred, We haa
YOU from bank TO bank! Wait for US "hen
the Jordan of death shall part 1or US.
no ,ri,lowod hanks of earth and the palm
groves of heaven.
On Jordan's stormy banks 1 stand,
And cast a wistful eye
To Cuuaan's fair and happy lana,
Where my possessions lie.
O, the transporting, rapturous scene
That rises on my sight!
Sweet fields arrayed in living green,
Hnt there is one step still in advance
suggested by this subject. If this religion
of Christ is SO important in life, and so
important in the last hours of life, how
much more important it will be in the
great eternity! / need not stand here and
argue it. There is something within your
soul that saws now, while 1 speak: Il am
immortal; the stars shall die, but l am i'm
mortal" You feel that your existence on
earth is only a small piece of your being.
1t is only a mile up to the grave, but 1t IS
ten thousand miles beyond. The slab OF
the tomb is only the milestone on which We
read of Infinite distance yet to be travelled.
The world itself will grow old and die. The
stars of our night will burn down in their
sockets and expire. The sur, like q spark
struck from an anvil, will flash and go out.
The winds will utter their last whisper, and
ocean heave its last gronn; but you and i
will live forever!!-g gigantic, Immortal;
mighty to suffer or enjoy; mighty to love or
hale. Mighty to soar or to sink. Then,
what will be to us the store. the shop, the
Office, the applause Of the world, the scorn
of our enem es, the things that lifted us
up. and the things that pressed us down?
| What to John Wesley are all the mobs that
howled aft r him? What 10 Voltaire are
all the nations that applauded him? What
to Paul now, the dungeons that chilled him?
! What to Latimer now, the flames that CON-
sumed i'm? All those who through tue
grace Ct Christ reach that land. will never
be disturbed. None to dispute their throne,
they shall reign for ever and ever. But,
alas, for those who have made no prepara-
ton for the future! When the sharp shod
hoofs of eternal disaster come up painting
and swift TO 60 over them. how will they
contend with horses? And when the waves
Of their VT. tchcdness rise up, white and
foamy, under the swooping of eternal
full and dash more high, oh, what will they
do amid the swelling of Jordan?'
If l could come into your heart this mo-
ment, l would see that many of you, my
dear friends, had vowed to be the Lords.
I know not what sickness it was or what
trial, but l verify believe there is not o man
in the house but has sometime vowed he.
would be the Lords. 1t might have been
at the time when YOU child lay sick you
said: go Lord, if thou wilt let this child get
we'll 1 will be o Christian" Or it might
have been in some business trouble, when
you ave said: W Lord, if though wilt let
49,, l,oo,> 49,, ,>,o. -, o,t,, I will 1o n (th,rrk;o =, -
You kept your property, your child got
we'll, the peril passed. Are you q Chris
tian? History says that long ago it had
been announced that the world was coming
to an end, and there was great excitement
in London. TWAS said that tue world would
perish on o certain Friday. On Tuesday,
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday the peo-
pie were in the cathedral, praying and weep
ing. 1t seemed as if the whole English ma
ton was being converted to God, for it was
announced as certain by philosophers that
on that coming Friday the world would
perish. Friday came and there were no
portents, no fires in the air. 10 earth
quakes. The day passed along just like
every other day, and when it was passed
and the night came, it is said that in Lon
don there was q scene of riot, and wassail,
and drunkenness, and debauchery such as
had never been witnessed. They forgot
their vow, they forgot their repentance,
they forgot their good resolutions. o. how
much human nature in tnat! While trials
and misfortunes come to us, and we are
down deep in darkness and trouble We
make vows. We say: 80 Lord, do so, and
I will do So" The darkness passes, the
peril goes away. We are as We were be-
fore, or worse; for oh, how often 1 have
seen men start for the kingdom of God,
come up within arms reach Of it..
God than they ever were beI n1rn
dropping from the very moment Of their
privilege into darkness forever! Oh, how
ungrateful We have been! Do you know
how much God has done for you and for
me? Have you never 1elt it? How much
He did for you to-day! Who spread the
night? Who has been kind and good 20
you oil your life long? Oh, how migrate
full we have been! Methinks the goodness
of God ought to lead this whole audience
to repentance. I know not your individual
history. Some Of you l never saw before,
some of you l will never see again; but
I know that God has been good 10 you.
What return have you made! There was
a steamer on one Of the Western lakes
heavily laden with passengers. and there
was a little child who stood on the side of
CAo taniuAIS 4euuluS o'eI ana WalCN1Qg
the water, when she lost her balance and
dropped into the waves. The lake was
very rough. The mother cried: Save nv
chlld! Save my child" There seemed
none disposed to leap into the water.
There was q Newfoundland dog on deck.
He looked up in his masters face, as if for
orders. His master said: Stray, over
board, catch 'em!" The dog sprung into
the water, caught the child 10y the garments.
and swan back to the steamer. The child
was picked up by loving hands, tie dog
was lifted on deck and the mother, ere she
tainted away, in utter thanksgiving 10 that
dog, threw her arms around its neck and
kissed it; but the dog shook himself of,
from her embrace and went and Ia d down
as though he had accomplished noting.
Shall a mother be grateful to q dog hal
saves her child and be ungrateful to De
Son of God who, from tue heights of
heaven, plunged into the depths Of dark
+ ness, and suffering, and woe, that He
:. GIT lut US up out of our sin and place
US on the rock of ages? Oh, the height,
the depth, the length, the i%ntinity, the Ger,
ror OF our lnglat tude! Don't YOU tent
; Jesus like that any more. Don't YOU tlrnst
I HIM back from your S. ri. He has been